Jim Carrey as Andy Kaufman Documentary Lands at Netflix
“Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond” goes behind the scenes on the Stern Show veteran’s award-winning “Man on the Moon” role
September 12, 2017
Netflix has picked up a new documentary about Jim Carrey’s portrayal of Andy Kaufman in the 1999 biopic “Man on the Moon.” The digital streaming giant announced the acquisition Monday from the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.
Directed by acclaimed documentarian Chris Smith (“American Movie”) and produced by Spike Jonze (“Being John Malkovich”) and VICE films, “Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond – Featuring a Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton” utilizes over 100 hours of footage from the “Man on the Moon” set to offer a behind-the-scenes look at how Carrey transformed himself into one of his generation’s most acclaimed if not peculiar comedians.
Carrey—who won a Golden Globe for playing Kaufman—reportedly refused to break character while he worked on the film, even insisting the cast and crew call him by the name “Andy.”
In addition to footage from the set of the film, Smith’s doc combines more recent conversations with Carrey, who has notably grown more philosophical in recent years and put a great deal of energy into his art work.
When Carrey called into the Stern Show back in June, he and Howard discussed everything from his Showtime series “I’m Dying Up Here” to his friendship with legendary comedian Sam Kinison. Carrey also revealed one of the keys to his newfound happiness: painting.
“That’s the key—the key to happiness is total involvement,” he told Howard. Get more on their conversation here.
